What are current vehicle restrictions for Rohtang Pass?

June 21, 2015

Due to the recent traffic restrictions imposed by NGT for Rohtang, there is a currently a lot of confusion among people planning to visit Ladakh, Lahaul & Spiti or even just Rohtang Pass. New laws like restrictions of Diesel engine vehicles, restricting total number of vehicles plying on the route resulted in a lot of dissatisfaction among the taxi unions and even the tourist crowd. More than dissatisfaction, there is confusion due to lack of knowledge and clarification on how people will be affected with these laws. I have received tons of emails from people asking for advice on how to visit or cross Rohtang or what the vehicle restrictions for Rohtang Pass are. Based on the queries I received, here is a little summary of what the restrictions are and how they apply.

What are current vehicle restrictions for Rohtang Pass?

Let me first of all clarify that all of the restrictions that I am going to summarize below do not apply to any vehicle travelling beyond Rohtang. So if you are planning to visit Ladakh, Lahaul or Spiti, you will not be impacted by any of these rules. These rules are only for vehicles going to Rohtang Pass and returning back. So in short, people who are visiting Manali and also want to visit Rohtang Pass before heading home.

All of the below mentioned rules only apply to vehicles travelling from Manali to Rohtang. If you are coming to Manali from the other side of Rohtang, you will not be affected by these laws in any way.

The only rule that applies to vehicles travelling beyond Rohtang is that they should not be older than 10 years.

Even if you are taking a Taxi to visit Ladakh, Lahaul or Spiti valley, following restrictions will not apply.

As of now, you are however required to obtain an affidavit from SDM office Manali as a proof of your travel beyond Rohtang. Proof can be in form of booking confirmations in Ladakh or Spiti and the affidavit may cost you Rs. 150. This affidavit will be used to issue the permits to travel to Rohtang one day in advance. You can obtain your permit at Tourist information center at Mall road Manali which is open from 10 AM to 8 PM, all seven days a week.

Now let us take a look at the rules. Even though taxi union took steps like strikes and appealing in Supreme Court, NGT’s decision of allowing only 1000 vehicles to Rohtang still stands. This law was passed in order to preserve the ecology of Rohtang and in my opinion, is somehow justified as well. People who have been to Rohtang before will remember the snow turning black due to fuel emissions, littering, waste, increasing pollution levels which is what NGT is trying to prevent. Final verdict for now is that only 1000 vehicles per day will be allowed to visit Rohtang Pass.

Out of the 1000 vehicles, 725 vehicles will be Himachal registered and remaining 275 from other states.

This number has been further broken into 60% petrol and 40% diesel vehicles, applying on both Himachal and non-Himachal vehicles.

Public transport buses are also a part of the 1000 vehicles allowed.

Effective July 3rd 2015, Congestion charges of Rs. 1000 for petrol operation vehicles and Rs. 2500 for Diesel will also apply. If the vehicle is carrying a total of 6 or more people, then the congestion charges would be Rs. 5000.

All vehicles are required to register themselves and obtain permits, which for personal vehicles are given at Manali Tourism Office and at Taxi Union office for taxi or commercial vehicles.

Motorcycles as of now are exempted from all of the above restrictions. This however is highly prone to change.

Up until now, the regular congestion charge of Rs. 50 can be paid and passes can be obtained at Gulaba check post. After July 3rd, the permits will only be given at Tourism office or Taxi Union office. This also applies to vehicles travelling to beyond Rohtang.

If you attempt to escape all these rules by going to Rohtang really early, in the dark, you may get fined at Gulaba check post. Without the permits, vehicles are only allowed to go as far as Palchhan.

As of now, Motorcycles are only required to pay Rs. 50 for congestion charges are exempted from all of the above mentioned restrictions.

Tourist vehicles are only allowed to go to Rohtang from 6 AM to 12 noon and will not be allowed to stay after 4 PM.

So the final verdict is that if you want to only visit Rohtang, it has now become quite a hassle. Good news however is that if your plan is to just cross Rohtang to go towards Ladakh or Spiti valley, you do not need to concern yourself with any of these restrictions. You will however have to carry some sort of proof of your travel plans in order to obtain the verdict. Up until now, People used to prefer going to Ladakh from Manali and return via Srinagar but I guess it is about to change now. If you want to avoid all the hassles, I strongly recommend that you take the Srinagar highway to reach Ladakh and return via Manali. People planning to visit Spiti should reach there from Shimla and return via Manali.

I hope this information is useful and clarifies the current situation at Rohtang. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask.

What are current vehicle restrictions for Rohtang Pass? was last modified: October 24th, 2016 by Vargis.Khan

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39 comments

Deepti thakurJune 17, 2017 at 5:52 pm

Sir we r hiring yellow line taxi innova from delhi to manali n if we would have online rohtang pass permit dn can we go by our taxi to rohtang pass.. Bcoz some r saying dt yellow line taxi of other state r not allowed to enter rohtang pass..

No private or commercial vehicle is allowed until Rohtang top Deepti, irrespective of whether you have the permit or not. You can go only as far as snow point and will have to return from there unless you have gotten yourself a permit to cross Rohtang towards Lahaul or Spiti

Hello Deepti – Sorry I mentioned Gulaba check post by mistake in my first reply. I meant to say Marhi and snow point. Beyond that private vehicles are not allowed and if the tourism office is telling you otherwise then I am surprised too.

Deepti thakurJune 18, 2017 at 8:39 pm

Hlllo sir thanx for ur information.. Sir plz tell me about marhi..is this the place in rohtang where all the tourist visit or they go beyond marhi if they hire a taxi from manali to rohtang pass…

Vargis.KhanJune 18, 2017 at 9:26 pm

Hi Deepti, It is a spot near Marhi called snow point, about 15 kilometers before Rohtang top until where tourists are allowed.

Deepti thakurJune 18, 2017 at 9:36 pm

Sir it means yellow line taxi of other state can go to the snow point untill where tourist are allowed,if they hv permit…and r tourist not allowed to go rohtang top ??

Vargis.KhanJune 19, 2017 at 8:29 pm

Correct Deepti. Tourists are not allowed beyond snow point.

KunalJune 5, 2017 at 5:53 pm

Hello,

Nice peice of information, I would be heading to spiti from manali on the 22nd June , morning bus to kaza. Do I need the permit (indian citizen)and is there anything else I should be aware of ahead of my journey.

Hello Sona Bhai, No you will not get the permit for Rohtang. Better way would be that you reach Leh via Srinagar and come back via Manali. This restriction doesn’t apply if you are coming towards Manali from other side of Rohtang Pass.

2. I have a TATA Safari, which was pre-owned , i.e. it is second hand , it is a 2008 model which is going to complete its 10 years on, 13/05/2018. ( reregistration date – 13/05/2008 ), will i get the permit ?

3. it was on HP, but was clear when i bought, will this be considered for the permit at rohtang pass?

Hello Mr. Patil – Best time to go would be in September but they will not allow your Safari as it would be over 10 years of age. Best way is that you reach Leh via Srinagar and come back via Manali, no restriction applicable in this way.

hello vargis,
I plan to ride to leh on classic 350 (self owned) from delhi b/w 1st to 11/12th sept 2016.
I would have opted for srinagar leh manali route but considering the current situation in the kashmir valley, I m choosing to avoid it.
As u have mentioned in one of ur articles that we need to show a proof of traveling beyond rohtang pass for the permit. I am confused as what kind of proof should be provide. I was not planning on doing any hotel bookings as such but now it appears to be compulsion.
Is there any other way we can prove that we are travelling beyond rohtang and if showing hotel bookings is the only way then will any privately booked hotel in leh do the job ?

Hi Sid – Honestly brother, I haven’t yet come across anyone who was asked to provide the proof but it is still a rule none the less. I do not think thy are asking for it anymore but yes if they do, then I cannot think of any other way but a hotel booking. And yes, a booking in any private hotel will do.

Hi Vargis,
We are a group of 4 guys and have planned bike trip to Leh via Manali and return via Srinagar. We have rented the bikes (2 royal enfield 350 cc). Visit date : 25th June-5th July
We are yet confused on PERMITS TO CROSS ROHTANG.
We planned that we’ll start from Mandi at 6 am and reach Jispa that day Itself. But now we’re doubtful if we’ll be able to do so. A hearty request, kindly guide us.

My advice would be that you reach Leh via Srinagar and return via Manali. Rohtang Permits are a hassle right now and you should avoid that. There is also a word that they may not allow rented bikes to go towards Rohtang at all but it is not yet confirmed. Best is to reach Leh via Srinagar and return via Manali to avoid unnecessary trouble.

Thanks for your reply Vargis. Actually we are going with a group (of 3 through car) that has booked hotels throughout on our itinerary itself. They are renting a car from ZoomCar. This means that the schedule is somewhat restricted. What do you advise? We’ll take your final advise on planning/changing route. Thanks a lot Vargis.

ZoomCar will be a second problem. My advice would still be that you reach via Srinagar to avoid unnecessary trouble and wastage of time. Another important advice is that please DO NOT under any circumstance take your zoomcar to visit the nearby areas in Leh. You can drive in it only until Leh but to visit areas like Nubra and Pangong, hire another taxi and bikes from Leh itself. Leave the Zoomcar and rented bikes at Hotel.

1. I would highly recommend that you consult a doctor regarding mountain sickness and your baby.
2. Since you will be coming back from Leh to Manali, no restrictions.
3. Have you prepared an itinerary yet since you are also planning golden temple?
4. No you do not.

First of all I would like to thank you for your blogs which is so detailed and its really helpful to plan mine trip for Leh in July 2017, Basically I will be driving from Pune to Leh via Srinagar and then to Manali and back to Pune. It will be of 20 days tour, I am planning to spend 12 days from Srinagar to Manali so that I can cover most of the places, kindly guide me how should I plan mine itenary also I would like to watch Kargil vijay diwas which is been held on 26th July 2017, so wanted to know at what time this function starts on 26th July. It will be helpful if you get this information for me.

Most of mine queries have been resolved. Just wanted to know from where do I get permission to visit “Pangong Lake” and what are the timings and do I have to return back to leh after visiting these places as I am planning to leave for Manali after visiting “Pangong Lake”.

Sir we wish to travel to manali near 15 july to 19 .we would like u to pls update us the rules to rohtang aftr july 3 if they been changed for bikes nd hp nd non hp vehicles.is it safe to travel in own car on these dates till rohtang pass ,keeping in mind rainy reason nd timely return to manali .